Oakland Attorneys, Protecting Assets With Trusts

After the death of the first spouse, the surviving spouse has the option of disclaiming all or part of the estate of the first spouse to die. The assets that are disclaimed are transferred to the disclaimer trust and are not included in the estate of the surviving spouse when he or she dies. The disclaimer trust will probably have the same distribution plan as the living trust, but the couple can also specify a different distribution plan for the disclaimer trust.

Importantly, the decision to disclaim must be made within nine months of the date of death, and the person making the disclaimer cannot have received any benefits from the asset being disclaimed. If the surviving spouse does not remember this deadline, or does not understand it, the disclaimer trust won’t work and, depending on the circumstances, the estate could face heavy taxes.

California Lawyers, Retaining Value With Disclaimed Assets

Please call 415-441-8669 or contact our lawyers online via e-mail to schedule a free initial consultation to discuss how a trust can be used to meet your estate planning goals. We serve clients in Oakland and in communities throughout the Bay Area and Southern California.

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